A NEW festival celebrating Purbeck’s passion for fish is lined up for the summer.

The Swanage Fish Festival will take place from June 5-7 at Prince Albert Gardens and Swanage Pier. The pilot event will feature local stallholders, cooking demonstrations, foraging master classes, crabbing competitions, and sea shanties, and will raise money for The Fishermen’s Mission, the RNLI and The Swanage Pier Trust.

The festival has also gained the support of celebrity chef Ed Baines, who will be at the festival to offer advice on serving up the perfect fish dish.

He said: “I’m thrilled to be part of the Swanage Fish Festival. I regularly visit Swanage and like to use local produce, so what better location to cook fish than overlooking the bay?”

Caroline Finch, one of the festival’s organisers, said: “We are extremely excited to host Swanage’s first ever fish festival and are delighted to have Ed Baines on board to help show off our quality, local seafood.

“Our biggest passion is supporting the charities but we also want to highlight the links Swanage has had with the sea and support sustainable fishing.

“We also want to promote the local businesses involved because the essence of the festival will be about keeping it local. All the stallholders are from the Isle of Purbeck,” she added.

The three-day festival will start with Fishy Friday, which will involve local eateries around Purbeck serving up a range of fish specialities and locally-caught seafood. The weekend line-up will feature a range of stalls, lobster pot making, live music, storytelling, competitions and a raffle.

Caroline said: “The Swanage community has come together and it is such a pleasure to be part of something very special.

“Swanage has one of the most beautiful bays in the UK and this festival is a chance to celebrate our fishing traditions, as well as enjoy some great food and good company.”

For further details visit swanagefishfest.org.